A senior Russian official has reported a major incident involving the attempted theft of nuclear materials in the past two years, raising fresh fears about the security of the former superpower's aging nuclear arsenal.

The Washington Post provides an in-depth look at the Iranian program to develop nuclear weapons from interviews with Vadim Vorobei, a former Soviet nuclear scientist. Vorobei offers an unprecedented description of how Iranian officials recruited their Russian tutors, brought them to Iran and sought missile technology and know-how but his experiences also underscore the difficulties Iran has faced in developing long-range missiles.

Michael Dobbs examines the political motives and international developments that led the intelligence community to reverse its position in 1999 and conclude that there was "a long-range missile threat to the United States before 2010."

Michael Dobbs argues that the collapse of the Soviet Union provided Iran with the technological know-how to become a major missile power.

"High on the Bush administration's list of justifications for war against Iraq are President Saddam Hussein's use of chemical weapons, nuclear and biological programs, and his contacts with international terrorists. What U.S. officials rarely acknowledge is that these offenses date back to a period when Hussein was seen in Washington as a valued ally."